Education

Have you ever wondered what band and chorus life is like for students in fifth through eighth grade at the Springs School? Here’s a little taste.

Our Fabulous Variety Show will entertain children at its Kids’ Night Out on Saturday. Plus: sewing club, kids' movies, arts and crafts, and a visit from a therapy dog.

A case of pertussis, commonly known as whooping cough, has been confirmed at Sag Harbor Elementary School.

A summer fund-raising campaign at Citarella markets on the South Fork brought in $126,680 for the East End Fund for Children, which supports seven child-centered nonprofits here. 

After months of open discussion on the merits of the traditional system of class ranking for Pierson High School seniors, the Sag Harbor School District appears poised to end or replace the practice while still naming a valedictorian and salutatorian.

It has been 15 years since East Hampton had an active PTSA, but that's about to change. On Sept. 30, East Hampton High School’s newly rebooted PTSA organization will convene a charter meeting at 6:30 p.m. via Zoom.

Antonia Franceschi, an award-winning dancer, will be teaching a series of master classes at the Hampton Ballet Theatre School in Bridgehampton on Saturday. Plus: open recreation for youth at East Hampton Middle School, story time, Legos, and crafts, a movie classic, and more coming up for kids and teens.

According to the faculty at Pierson Middle and High School in Sag Harbor, the Yondr pouch program for cellphones has been a success. The school board is also largely in favor of it.

As the 2024-25 school year was just beginning, both the East Hampton and Sag Harbor School Districts found themselves facing a challenge: the sudden resignation of a secondary school teacher. Who’s going to teach that class? The answer came in the form of other teachers already on staff, who stepped up when asked by administrators to take on extra classes.

Bonfire Coffeehouse is now delivering children's lunches to the Amagansett School on Wednesdays and Thursdays.

Organización Latino-Americana of Eastern Long Island and Guild Hall are teaming up to offer a full day of art-inspired entertainment for families.

Art and history at the farm museum, movies for kids and teens, a Lego challenge, a Y.A. author reading, and open play time at Hub 44 are all in the family activity lineup this week.

Kristie Reddick and Jessica Honaker, a team of Cincinnati-based entomologists, are on a mission to bring arthropod education to schools around the world. They will be on the East End from Oct. 10 through 17 for a series of school assemblies and workshops through Stony Brook University’s FoodLab, a food production and agricultural education center on its Southampton campus.

On Monday morning, the start of the first full week of the 2024-25 school year, administrators at the Bridgehampton School abruptly reassigned a popular tenured teacher, Tom House, to home leave. Mr. House, who lives in Springs and is the founder of Hamptons Pride and its signature parade in East Hampton Village, has been employed by the district for 15 years.

The second installment of this column, here to recommend books to tweens and teens, is all about graphic novels -- one of my favorite genres to read.

The Amagansett School’s ongoing effort to fire its tenured principal continued this week with another six hours of testimony and questioning, with the principal’s attorneys insisting that the case should be dismissed.

Talk about a summer well spent: From science research to lifeguarding to volunteer work, teens on the South Fork kept themselves busy exploring their interests and making a difference in their communities.

Children and teens who love the performing arts have many opportunities to study and practice acting over the coming weeks and months. Plus: Hurricane swim tryouts, arts and crafts, story time in the garden, book clubs, movie screenings, and more coming up for kids and teens this week.

Andy Sabin, president of the South Fork Natural History Museum’s board of directors, will help kids of all ages learn about snapping turtles and even try to find some on Saturday at 10 a.m. at the museum. Plus: kids' movies, arts and crafts, card games, and more family-friendly fun around town.

A key policy change this year at the Springs School will be to its safety and security plan, a document that outlines its response to a real-life emergency or disaster should one arise. “Drills that are conducted during the school day with students present need to be conducted in what we’re calling a trauma-informed, developmentally-and-age-appropriate manner," the superintendent said this week.

A disciplinary hearing ongoing since July 10, conducted by the New York State Education Department, seeks to answer the question of whether the Amagansett School principal took a red envelope containing a holiday gift card meant for another school employee.

Summer’s almost over, kids — school is right around the corner.

The East Hampton School Board on Tuesday approved spending $81,735 from its repair reserve account to make sure the Blue Point Lockdown System — a key component of the district’s safety infrastructure — is working properly. The district has also hired a new bus driver, while putting out the message that still more drivers are needed.

Project Most will host an exploration hike on the Paumanok Path on Saturday at 3 p.m. Plus: pirate adventures, crafts video games, international snack night and candy taste testing, an outdoor movie, and more activities coming up for kids and teens.

In an era when digital connectivity is ubiquitous, the role of cellphones in educational settings has sparked significant debate: Should high schools ban them from classrooms, hallways, and even cafeterias? While they can serve as valuable tools for learning and communication, their widespread use by teens during school hours has raised concerns about distractions and mental health across the country and right here on the South Fork.

Project Most, a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing meaningful after-school programs, day care, and weekend activities for children of all ages, has an aptly named fund-raiser coming up this weekend: Building Blocks.

The circus performers Johnny Peers and the Muttville Comix are coming to LTV Studios for the Friday Family Frolics series tomorrow at 5 p.m. to make the whole family hoot and holler. Plus: Summer reading wrap-up parties, family art activities, fun at the library, an outdoor movie, and more coming up for kids and teens.

“We found Faith through a fluke,” said the award-winning singer and PBS-TV host Cristina Fontanelli, referring to Faith Mullaly, a 13-year-old Montauk student who will be performing at the Basilica of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary in Southampton on Saturday as part of a charitable concert organized by the Cristina Fontanelli Foundation.

The East Hampton Star’s Summer Academy took a field trip to Amagansett this week for a stop at Bonfire Coffeehouse, which opened in May. Laura Donnelly, the East End’s expert food critic and longtime Star food columnist, offered a primer on restaurant reviewing. After tasting a range of Bonfire’s sweet and savory offerings, here’s what our students had to say.

The East Hampton School District has embarked on a study with a consultant on the feasibility of putting electric school buses into service beginning three years from now.